After serving 11 months in prison for fraud charges, Real Housewives of New Jersey star Teresa Giudice was released from federal prison early Wednesday. iudice was picked up from the Danbury Federal facility in Connecticut by her lawyer.
USA TODAY

NEW YORK – Teresa Giudice doesn't really want to think about it. Or talk about it.

"We’re going to appeal it," the "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star revealed in an interview with USA TODAY. "We’re going to fight it."

Joe, who was born in Italy and came to the U.S. as an infant, has stated he was unaware he wasn't an American citizen. He has until Nov. 9 to appeal the judge's ruling.

The "Real Housewives" star, best-selling author and mom is a straight shooter when she reveals how she feels about her husband's legal situation.

"It’s sad, families shouldn’t be broken up this way," Giudice says. "Especially when it’s a nonviolent, it’s a white collar crime. He’s paying for his mistakes."

Joe is currently serving a 41-month federal prison sentence for bankruptcy fraud, entering prison after his wife served nearly a year after pleading guilty to bankruptcy fraud herself. Fans of Giudice kept up with her during the stint with the Bravo three-part TV special "Teresa Checks In," which chronicled the aftermath of her sentencing.

When it comes to thinking about all the possibilities (Will Joe be deported? Will the family move to Italy?), however, Giudice doesn't want to answer questions about what's next.

"I'm just taking it day by day," she says, confirming that she doesn't want to think that far ahead yet.

Teresa Giudice opened up about her husband's time in prison, how she and her children are coping and the upcoming season of "Real Housewives of New Jersey."(Photo: Tommy Garcia/Bravo Media)

Outside of any histrionics of past reunion specials or real life drama, Giudice is still a wife and a mother to the couple's four daughters – Gia, 17, Gabriella, 14, Milania, 12, and Audriana, 9.

In fact, she says her favorite part of her relationship with Joe is their kids, calling them her "pride and joy" and even saying that giving birth to Audriana on the show was one of her favorite memories as a "Real Housewife."

She's temporarily a single parent right now. "I’m doing this all by myself," she says of the biggest challenge of her situation. "I didn’t sign up to have four kids on my own. Children need both parents. It's hard."

Although she says Audriana doesn't know about what's happening with her father, the other girls do and "they're very, very, very upset. They adore their father."

"Everything that I’ve been through, adults can handle it, but children, it’s hard for them," Giudice says. "Just looking at them the way they’re handling it, it amazes me. It shows me that I am doing a good job, because they’re great."

Above all the legal drama, Giudice says she's just trying to stay positive.

For one, she's got the new season of "Real Housewives," premiering on Nov. 7. Giudice, who's the only original cast member still on the Bravo show, teased two new housewives, a fitness challenge (which hopefully touches on her bodybuilding moment this summer) and her daughter Milania recording her first song "to distract her with everything that’s going on" for the upcoming Season 9.

Giudice says the two new women "both have great family values and they mesh great with us," so viewers can probably expect more of the same reality-TV drama of recent seasons.

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The networks are starting to roll out their plans for their new fall shows, including a reboot of the classic comedy "Murphy Brown," which debuts on CBS on Sept. 27. The show will welcome back returning cast members including Candice Bergen and Grant Shaud. Check out the premiere dates for a few more shows that have the chance to become your new favorites during the 2018-19 TV season. GPN

"Manifest" (NBC, Sept. 24): Airline passengers including Josh Dallas ("Once Upon a Time" and Jack Messina have to unravel a mystery when their flight arrives five years in the future. CRAIG BLANKENHORT/NBC

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"The Neighborhood" (CBS, Oct. 1): Cedric the Entertainer ("Barbershop") headlines this comedy about a man who is suspicious of the friendly Midwestern family that moved in next door. Sheaun McKinney ("Great News") co-stars. Monty Brinton/CBS

"All American" (CW, Oct. 10): Taye Diggs plays Billy Baker, the coach for a Beverly Hill high school football team who recruits Spencer James (Daniel Ezra) from Compton to play for his team. Ray Mickshaw, The CW

"The Kids Are Alright" (ABC, Oct 16): The comedy tells the story of an Irish-Catholic family in 1970s Los Angeles. The large ensemble cast includes Michael Cudlitz ("The Walking Dead," second right) and Mary McCormack ("The West Wing," right) as well as Sawyer Barth, Santino Barnard, Caleb Foote, Christopher Richards and Jack Gore. Tony Rivetti/ABC

"The Conners" (ABC, Oct. 16): John Goodman reprises his role in this spinoff as Dan, the patriarch of the Conner family, which is dealing with the apparent death of Dan's wife, Roseanne. Star Roseanne Barr was fired from "Roseanne" after racist tweets. Greg Gayne, ABC

"The Fix" (ABC)": Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje ("Lost") and Robin Tunney ("The Mentalist") star in this show about a woman who returns to the Los Angeles district attorney's office years after a high-profile defeat. Marcia Clark, who prosecuted O.J. Simpson, is an executive producer and writer. Ed Herrera/ABC

"The Village" (NBC): Frankie Faison ("Coming to America") and Lorraine Toussaint ("Rosewood") lead an ensemble cast as Ron and Patricia, two neighbors in a Brooklyn apartment building. Peter Kramer/NBC

"Abby's" (NBC): Natalie Morales ("Parks and Recreation") plays Abby, the owner of an unlicensed bar nestled in her backyard with a devoted group of regulars including Fred (Neil Flynn, "The Middle"). Justin Lubin/NBC

"Fam" (CBS): Nina Dobrev ("The Vampire Diaries") stars as a woman whose life with her fiancé (Tone Bell, "The Flash") drastically changes when her half-sister shows up on their doorstep in need of a place to stay. Sonja Flemming/CBS

"The Red Line" (CBS): This ensemble drama, which includes Noah Wyle ("ER") and Aliyah Royale ("Major Crimes"), follows the lives of three Chicago families after a white cop mistakenly shoots an African-American doctor. The show is produced by Ava DuVernay and Greg Berlanti. Elizabeth Morris/CBS

"Charmed" (CW, Oct 14): The show, a reboot of the series which ran for eight seasons from 1998-2006, follows three sisters (Melonie Diaz, Sarah Jeffery and Madeleine Mantock) who discover they're witches. Katie Yu, The CW

"Legacies" (CW, Oct. 25): Danielle Rose Russell is Hope Mikaelson, one of the leaders of the next generation of supernatural beings who were first introduced in CW's "The Vampire Diaries" and "The Originals." Annette Brown, The CW